Somewhere I Belong
by BreakTheWalls
Summary: Avery is stuck in her sister's shadow and is set out to prove that she is so much more than meets the eye. Carson is not only trying to show her crush that she is more than just one of the guys, she also has to deal with his girlfriend. Whenever someone takes interest in Jade, she has to move on from her past that haunts her and move onto the future.
1. Preparedness

**AN:** **Ever just feel so inspired? That was the case for this story. I'm aware that I have other stories that are published, but when your muses take over, there's not much you can do besides cave in. I am so stoked for this new project.**  
 **Alexandra Daddario is the model for Carson Woodard, Cassadee Pope is the model for Avery Kelly, and Katie McGrath is the OC model for Jade Balor. Carson and Avery are my OC's and Jade is Danie's(CelticPrincessx3) OC. Also, thank you Danie for the cover.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own anything or anyone you may recognize.**

* * *

 **SOMEWHERE I BELONG  
** Preparedness

* * *

It was the beginning of 2019 which meant that it was time for a fresh start for the WWE superstars and personnel. Also, Royal Rumble was lurking the shadows. The first of the big five pay-per-views was set for Sunday January 27,2019, but first there was an NXT Takeover pay-per-view happening the night before named: Takeover:Phoenix. The Takeovers generally took place the Saturday before one of the big five pay-per-views which was: Royal Rumble, Wrestlemania, Money In The Bank(which was just recently added to be considered a major pay-per-view), Summerslam, and Survivor Series. This was a time when the NXT superstars got to be in the spotlight and show the WWE Universe what they were made of.

This was the case for Avery Kelly, who was determined to prove that she could hang with the best. People overlooked her because of who she was. She was the younger sister of former WWE women's superstar, Kelly Kelly. Kelly Kelly was one of the most beautiful women to ever grace the WWE, but she wasn't as technically sound as some of the other women that ever been in the WWE. Avery understood that the fans didn't think she was a beautiful as her sister, however; she was a better wrestler than her sister and she just wished that the fans saw her ability between the ropes.

Avery was scheduled for a big match for Takeover:Phoenix for the NXT women's title. She was going to be involved in a six pack pack challenge featuring some of the best women in NXT such as: Candice LeRae, Lacey Evans, Bianca Belair, Toni Storm, and current NXT women's champion, Shayna Baszler. Avery had no idea who would be winning the title match; she just hoped it was her.

She was in the WWE performance center training with her good friend and one of her opponents for the six pack challenge, Candice LeRae. Avery was grateful for Candice and all of her adorableness. When Avery made her debut in NXT last year, Candice was the first to welcome her with open arms and making her feel like she belonged there. Candice was the one Avery went to whenever she needed advice. The two women were practicing some moves for the upcoming match. Avery had a new move she wanted try out for the match and there was no one she trusted to try it out more with than Candice.

"You ready to try out this new move?" Candice looked up to Avery, who just climbed onto the top turnbuckle. Avery nodded. Candice could sense the nervousness from her friend, who didn't really do much high-flying. "Avery, it's going to be okay. You got this. I got you, I won't let anything bad happen. I'll be right here to catch you."

Avery let out a deep breath and went for the kill. Coming flying off the turnbuckle, she executed the dragonrana onto Candice, who sold the move to perfection. Avery was greeted with a high five and hug from her friend. "What a rush! That was exciting." Avery felt like she was coming off a high.

"Av, that was incredible. I bet the crowd is going to pop hard whenever they see you perform that move onto me. It's always exciting to show off a new move, especially if it's not in your usual repertoire."

"I'm glad Hunter approved the move and let me try it out. I wanted to add something new to my moveset and I thought the dragonrana would be awesome. Considering the fact I'm not one to fly around the ring, I think that this move will be something unique and most certainly not one fans would expect to see from me."

Candice smiled at her friend. "I'm glad I'm the one who has the honor of taking the very first dragonrana from Avery Kelly live on pay-per-view." She wrapped her arm around her friend's shoulders. "I just want to say that I'm proud of you and that you have came a long way. Maybe after this Saturday, people will stop putting you in your sister's shadow cause you are an incredible athlete and it's a shame that they only know you as being Kelly Kelly's little sister."

"Thank you for the kinds words; unfortunately, it is what it is. Not much I can do about what the fans think of me." Deep down, the thought of the fans thinking that she was just Kelly Kelly's sister bothered her. She thought she had a lot to offer, but people wouldn't give her the time of day. It took her awhile to be accepted in the NXT locker room because of who her sister was. People thought that Kelly had something to do with Avery getting hired, which already made Avery have major heat. When they realized how hard Avery was trying and how much she loved the business, the roster started accepting her. She just wished the fans would do the same.

The two women got out of the ring, done with their in-ring training session for the day. Avery put back on her white 'I don't sweat, I sparkle' tanktop over the hot pink sports bra. She had a fetish for anything sparkly and glittery so she thought that tanktop suited her. She went over to her pink gym bag and put on her black boxing gloves. She was going to hit a punching bag for a few minutes before she called it a day. She looked over in Candice's direction who had her black gym bag hoisted up on her right shoulder.

"Well, I'm going to go now. Johnny and I have a date night tonight before we have to fly out to Phoenix in the morning." Candice grasped Avery's shoulder and squeezed, a friendly gesture for her hardwork today. "Good job today. I'll see you in the morning, but I'm sure I'll be talking to you again sometime before the night ends. So, ta-ta for now."

"Talk to you later. Have fun on your date." She threw her friend a friendly wave before heading over to the punching bag. She punched the bag once before stopping, sensing someone was watching her. She turned around to see none other than Adam Cole standing there. "What are you doing here?" She didn't sound rude, she was just perplexed that the leader of the Undisputed Era was here at the performance center when she was sure there was other stuff he could be doing.

"I called you twice and you didn't answer your phone, but I was getting ready to head to town so I went by your place to see if you wanted to come with me. Your sister was leaving the house and said you were here, so I decided to come by and see if you wanted to come with me whenever you got done?"

Avery nodded. "Sorry I didn't answer my phone. I called Candice to see if she wanted to come train with me. I wanted to try out my this new move for the six pack challenge this Saturday at Takeover." Adam merely nodded his head and smiled. "Anyways, yes, I will come with you to town. I'll just need to go home and shower and change."

"Av, there's no need to go home and change. It's not like I'm going anywhere fancy." He gestured to his attire, which consisted of a t-shirt, gray adidas hoodie, blue jeans, sneakers, and his hair thrown into a bun. While it wasn't necessarily cold outside considering they were located in Orlando, Florida, it was still a little chilly since it was in the midst of winter.

The woman rolled her eyes. "Fine, I'll just go looking all disgusting and smelly."

Adam reciprocated her eyeroll and threw his head back in dramatic fashion. "Avery, there is nothing wrong with how you look. I wish you would quit being so hard on yourself." He disliked whenever Avery was so critical of herself.

The Undisputed Era leader and the younger sister of Kelly Kelly became friends through Candice LeRae and Johnny Gargano. They didn't really talk much when she first arrived in NXT during the summer last year, but that all changed one night whenever Johnny and Candice had a fourth of July cookout at their house. Avery noticed that Adam was sulking that night so she went outside and offered him a beer. He accepted the beer from her and she took a seat beside him on the lawn chair. She asked him what was wrong and he mentioned to her that him and his longtime girlfriend had broken up. They started chatting more throughout the night and Adam found out Avery was one of the coolest people on the roster. He found himself frequently hanging out with Avery at the condo she shared with her sister. Kelly was usually gone so it was generally just the two of them hanging out, drinking beer, and watching television.

Avery took off her black boxing gloves and tossed them in her pink gym bag. She would just come back later and do her her training with the punching bag. She slipped on her gray adidas hoodie that matched Adam's. They went shopping one day and Avery loved the hoodie, so she made Adam get one too and labeled them as 'best friend hoodies.' Her best friend noticed the hoodie she was wearing and smirked.

"I see we both decided to wear our best friend hoodies today."

Avery nodded. "Yeah, this is my favorite hoodie, so of course I am going to wear it."

"You ready to go?" Adam grabbed Avery's gym bag and hoisted it on his left shoulder. Avery nodded her head and the duo proceeded to walk out of the performance center. "Since you coming to town with me today, whenever we get done, I'll go home and change my clothes and come back here with you. I know you weren't done with your training quite yet. Sorry that I interrupted your training time."

"It's alright. I was almost done anyways. I just wanted to get a few hits in on the punching bag. You don't have to worry about coming back here with me."

Adam's eyebrow furrowed. "You sure? Cause I don't mind if you want to come back."

"Yeah, I'm sure. I actually just want to rest this evening before we have to fly out in the morning to go to Phoenix."

Adam nodded. They made it to his car and he threw her gym bag in the backseat before fully getting into the driver's seat and adjusting himself. Avery got into the passenger seat. He drove out of the performance center parking lot and headed to town with his friend.

* * *

Carson Woodard was eating lunch with Jade Balor. They were at the Bahama Breeze restaurant going over some spots for their match at Takeover:Phoenix. The women were ecstatic about the match they would be involved in at the pay-per-view; which was a Falls Count Anywhere match. Carson and Jade were involved in a personal feud onscreen that was be culminated in this Falls Count Anywhere match. Jade had a Poison Ivy type gimmick while Carson was a rocker chick. Jade's character involved her being cold and calculating. Carson's character involved her being a drifter who loved to rock out.

Their feud started whenever Carson was backstage alone in an secluded area listening to her rock music and Jade approached Carson with the idea of them forming an alliance. Jade tried to manipulate Carson, but Carson wasn't falling for it. Jade didn't accept Carson's answer, so, whenever Carson was wrestling the NXT women's champion Shayna Baszler, Jade decided to interfere and cost Carson her chance to win the NXT women's championship. After that, Carson and Jade were finding different ways to retaliate against one another.

They wrestled at the last Takeover the previous November, but their match ended in double countout. For this match, NXT general manager announced on NXT television that Carson and Jade would be taking place in an Falls Count Anywhere match. They were honored for their names to be synonymous with them being the first women in NXT's history to be wrestling in an Falls Count Anywhere match at a Takeover pay-per-view.

Triple H gave them an outline of some ideas that they could use for their match. He was going to let them come up with their own ideas and then they were to report to one of the producers that Saturday morning of the pay-per-view to discuss the whole match. That's what lead them to meeting up at Bahama Breeze. Carson was enjoying the jerk chicken pasta and Jade was enjoying her black bean burger.

Carson scooted the black raybans that were sliding down her nose back up before taking another look at the footnotes they've made so far. "Looks like we have some pretty cool ideas thus far. Anything else you can think of?"

"I just want to make sure we take advantage of the Falls Count Anywhere stipulation." Jade took a swallow of her lemon water. "I want us to fight outside the ring, backstage, in the crowd, and wherever else we can."

Carson nodded before taking a swallow of her half and half tea. "Me too. I want to show Hunter why he trusted us to be in a Falls Count Anywhere match. I want the audience to have fun with this match and give them a match to remember for years and years from now."

"In that case, we should probably go back over our outline and see if there is anything else we could possibly add." Jade took a bite of her black bean burger while looking at their match outline. So, far the two women came up with stellar ideas for the match. Jade wasn't too worry about coming up with anymore ideas at this point due to to fact there would be a producer helping them finish out their match Saturday morning. "You know, Carson, there is nothing I can think of to add and there will be someone going over the outline with us."

"You're right, Jade." Carson took the last bite of her jerk chicken pasta and tossed the fork and her surrounding trash into her bowl, indicating that she was done with her lunch. "I believe what we have thus far is golden. Do you have any idea who is helping us produce our match?"

Jade threw her arms up and shrugged. "That's a good question. I have no earthly idea who is going over the match with us. Hunter said it was a surprise." She wiped her mouth after taking the last little bite of her black bean burger. She took more swallows of her lemon water to help her down the burger better. "I do know something that's going to be happening for sure at Takeover though."

"What's that?" A smile came upon Carson's face.

"My brother is going to be in attendance at Takeover. He says he's excited about our match. I hope I don't disappoint him." Jade's last name was the same as current RAW superstar, Finn Balor. Finn had a couple of years on Jade; being 9 years older than his sister. The younger Balor was aware of the crush that Carson had on her brother. However; Finn was oblivious to Carson's feelings and treated the woman like she was one of the guys. Jade didn't intervene on the two because she didn't think that was any of her business. She just hoped one day Finn and Carson would finally get together since she thought they would be so adorable together. Finn was currently dating social media correspondent, Cathy Kelley, so it's not like Finn and Carson would be dating soon anyways.

"That makes me feel even more pressured. I know your brother isn't that critical, but just knowing that he'll be there makes me have butterflies."

Jade chuckled at Carson. "It's going to be alright, Carson. We are going to go out there and do what we do best and that's tear the roof off the joint. Finn is just going to be another face in the crowd."

Carson smiled. Jade was absolutely right. The two women had the potential to steal the show at Takeover and they were going to do just that. "You're absolutely right. I'm excited for our match Saturday. We'll give the fans something to talk about for years to come." Carson grabbed some cash from her black leather satchel and laid it down on the table. She paid for her meal in full plus the tip.

"That's the plan, man." Jade took out some cash and paid for her meal. She did the same as Carson, paying for her meal in full plus the tip. "Well, you ready to go? I have some last minute stuff to get from the store before I go home and start packing my stuff up for the road."

"I have to go to the store too. I'll see you in the morning at the airport."

The ladies sat up from their seats and walked out of the restaurant and gave each other friendly goodbye waves before heading to their respective cars and heading out to do what they needed to do.

* * *

Avery was at home packing up her belongings for the road. She heard her ringtone _"Jackie Chan" by Tiesto, Dzeko, Premo, and Post Malone_ blaring so she walked over to her phone, which was charging on her end table near the right side of the bed. She figured it was Candice calling her, but she was shocked to see that her screen read, _sis_.

Kelly had left their house this morning and was currently out of town doing a photoshoot, so it was shocking that she was calling her. But, Avery did always welcome a phone call from sister. "Hey, sis, what's up?"

 _"Just got finished with my photoshoot. What's up with you?"_

"Packing up my belongings for the road. I am flying out in the morning to go to Phoenix for Takeover and the Royal Rumble pay-per-views."

 _"I'm going to be heading out to Phoenix in the morning too. I am going to attend your Takeover pay-per-view. I know you got a ticket for me and I want to put it to use. Just leave it at the front door of the building and I'll pick it up there. I want to see my little sister in her first championship match."_

Avery thought she was going to cry. Kelly never attended any of the events she was apart of even though they lived together in Florida right down the street from Full Sail University. "I'm so happy to hear that. It makes me feel good knowing that you'll be there."

 _"I want to show my love and support for you. I know how hard you have been working to become one of the best women on the NXT roster. Hell, I think you're a better wrestler than when I was there."_

Avery chuckled. "I appreciate that. I might be the better wrestler but you're definitely the more beautiful one."

 _Kelly rolled her eyes. "Whatever you say, Av. You are absolutely beautiful. Just because I model and you don't doesn't mean that you're unattractive at all. I'm not sounding biased whenever I say this, but you are without a doubt one of the most beautiful women on the entire roster._

"Yeah, you're being biased." The sisters chuckled in unison. "But, thank you so much. I just wish that people would look at me other than Kelly Kelly's little sister."

 _Kelly feigned her feelings being hurt. "You sound like being Kelly Kelly's little sister is a bad thing."_

"Trust me, I am not saying that it is a bad thing being your sister. I love you so much, it's just that I wish that the fans would give me the time of day. It took a couple of months for the whole roster to accept me. Candice was the first one to accept me as just Avery Kelly and not Kelly Kelly's little sister."

 _"Everything will change, just give it time. This is your first Takeover match so this is the time for you to show the fans that you are so much more than just Kelly Kelly's little sister."_

"I am going to seize the opportunity."

 _"I know you will. Well, I have to go. I was on break, so I decided to call you and tell you that I was going to be in attendance cheering on the amazing Avery Kelly. I love you sis and keep your head up."_

"Love you too, sis. See you Saturday." Then there was a click of the red button to disconnect the phone call.

Avery smiled to herself. There was something else she could forward to on Saturday. She went back to packing up her belongings even more excited than ever about Takeover:Phoenix.

* * *

It was 7:45 pm and Jade found herself at Forever Young Crossfit with the current WWE Universal champion, Seth Rollins. The Kingslayer finally became the universal champion back at Summerslam this past August whenever he defeated Brock Lesnar, Braun Strowman, Finn Balor, Roman Reigns and the newly returned Dean Ambrose in a six pack challenge. It was a feel good moment for Seth who clawed and scratched his way back to the top for two years. He would be defending his universal title against Dean Ambrose this Sunday at the Royal Rumble.

Seth decided to head out to Orlando with good friend Finn Balor since Finn was staying with Jade for the rest of the week and they would all be heading out to Phoenix in the morning anyways. He hadn't seen the younger Balor sister that much ever since she was working her way up in the ranks in the women's division in NXT and he was training harder than ever. He managed to persuade Jade to come to this crossfit gym with him. Well, actually, Seth told Jade they would be going to workout at Jade's gym near her condo, but that was obviously a lie considering that they were thirty minutes away from her condo at Forever Young Crossfit.

"You're such a liar, Rollins. I can't believe that I actually thought you were going to work out at a regular gym for once." Considering her tone was snarky, Jade didn't seem to be too enthused about them being at this place. She wasn't too much into crossfit. She tried it once before and it wasn't her cup of tea. She preferred a basic gym.

"Sorry, sweet cheeks. You know that I'm the architect. I can come up with different ideas to make people do what I want." The Architect was one of Seth's nicknames onscreen, but offscreen, he could be the same calculating man as his onscreen character. "C'mon, crossfit isn't that bad."

Jade rolled her eyes. "Not to you. They don't call you Crossfit Jesus for no reason." Seth chuckled at her. "This isn't my cup of tea." As much as she disliked the idea, she got out of passenger side of her car and walked with Seth towards the gym. He opened the door. "Thanks." She walked past him and he followed suit. "So, what exactly do you have in mind for us today?"

"We are doing the chipper style today. I have our workout all planned out."

Jade gave the most confusing look one could muster. That look she gave Seth had him laughing. "What in the ever loving world is Chipper style? I have a feeling that this is going to kill me."

Seth chuckled and rolled his eyes. "Chipper style is a one round series of exercises, usually with high reps to be completed in the fastest time possible. It's a high volume, muscle building grind."

"What kind of exercises do you have planned?"

"One hundred press ups, seventy five bodyweight squats, fifty burpees, and twenty five pull ups."

Jade threw her head back and groaned. "Yeah, I am going to die today, no doubt about it. I hope you'll be happy with the fact this might be the last time you see me Rollins."

"You can be so dramatic sometimes. It's not that bad. You are in great physical shape, I think you can handle this."

Seth felt his mouth go dry as he watched Jade take off her pink tanktop that revealed an aqua sports bra. It matched well with her blue, pink, and aqua floral leggings and aqua nikes. In turn, Jade felt her mouth go dry as he watched Seth strip out of his black and brave shirt and slid out of his sweatpants to reveal him wearing black basketball shorts. It was chilly outside so he wore sweatpants over his shorts. The universal champion redid his bun while the younger Balor sibling tossed her long brown curly hair into a ponytail.

Jade grabbed her phone so she took a picture with Seth. He was smiling into the camera while she was staring at him in disbelief. She immediately posted the picture on instagram. JadeBalor: WWERollins forced me to come do crossfit with him, so if you don't see me on Saturday at Takeover, he's the reason why.

"Alright, you ready?" The Architect motioned towards the main area of the gym. "I hear the equipment calling our name."

"I'm as ready as I'll never be." She then followed him to the area and started their workout. One thing was certain, she would definitely be in tip top shape by the time Saturday rolled around.

* * *

Carson was at her condo eating dinner which consisted food from a ground turkey sweet potato skillet recipe and facetiming her best friend, Charly Caruso. Carson was stoked that she would be reunited with her best friend this coming up weekend in Phoenix. Carson and Charly were both from Indianapolis, Indiana and actually went to the same high school. Charly was just two years older than Carson. While they weren't that close in high school, they did get along; they just became best friends whenever they both signed with WWE. Charly debuted in 2016 and Carson signed with WWE in 2016, but didn't appear on NXT television until May of last year.

"Did you and Jade ever plan out your match?"

Carson took a bite of her dinner. "Yeah. We had lunch earlier at Bahama Breeze to plan out our match. We planned out most of our spots; we are just going to have one of the producers help us with the final touches Saturday morning."

"Do you have any idea who is helping you with the finishing touches of your match?"

"Apparently it's a surprise. That's what Jade told me whenever I asked her earlier."

Charly's eyebrows furrowed. "That's strange. Maybe they hired a new producer and it's a big name."

Carson took another bite of her food and shrugged her shoulders. "That could be the case. I just wonder who it could be. I was hoping that it would be Shawn who was going to help us out. Obviously because he's one of the best ever and he would someone who could guide Jade and I to an amazing fight."

"That would be awesome. Whether Shawn is the one or not, I have a feeling that you and Jade are going to steal the show at Takeover."

"Thank you, that means a lot to me." Carson smiled at Charly, which was reciprocated. "I'm excited that I'll be apart of the pre-show panel. It'll be cool to have you interview me."

"I'm excited too."

Carson's eyes lit up, remembering that she had to tell Charly something. Charly watched Carson with amusement as she saw the look on her best friend's face. "I can't believe I haven't mentioned it yet, but Finn is going to be in the audience at Takeover."

"It would make sense that he would be there considering his sister is participating in the one of the biggest matches of the pay-per-view." Charly was aware of how much Carson liked Jade's older brother, Finn Balor. It bothered Charly that Carson was bothered by the fact that Finn only ever saw Carson as one of the guys. It also didn't help that Finn was taken by social media correspondent, Cathy Kelley. "That should give you more reason to be more motivated though. Impress Finn and show him that you're one of the best women in the entire WWE."

"You know it's going to be awkward if Cathy has to interview me." Carson got the vibe that Cathy didn't like her at all. Carson was jealous of the fact that Cathy was dating the man she harbored feelings for, but besides that, she found Cathy to be personable. However; Carson would catch Cathy giving her dirty looks and she wasn't entirely sure of the reason why. They two women hardly ever interacted.

"I haven't heard her say anything about you. I'm sure she wouldn't say anything around me or to me about you because she knows that I would tell you."

Carson chuckled. "That's very true. Maybe she doesn't hate me, maybe I'm just being paranoid." Carson heard a knock on her door and hers and Charly's eyebrows furrowed at the same time. "I wonder who in the world is at my door." The brunette walked to the door with Charly still on on the end of the line in her sight. She opened the door and was shocked to see none other than Finn Balor standing there. "Finn, what are you doing here?"

Charly's face lit up as she heard Finn's name being said. "Carson, I have to go. I'll talk you later."

The leader of Balor Club flashed the smile he was known for. "I was in the area, so I figured I stop by and see what you were up to. I texted you and never messaged me back, but I know now why. You were talking to Charly."

Carson scooted to the side of the door so Finn could walk in. "Yeah, sorry about that." She shut the door and walked back to the living room, sitting down on the couch and placing her phone on the end table beside her. "I just wasn't expecting any messages or visitors right now."

Finn took a seat in the recliner next to Carson's couch. "I was seeing if you wanted to hang out and maybe go grab something to eat. But, I see you've already ate."

Carson cursed to herself. Of course, the one time that she actually fixes a home cooked meal, Finn is in town and wants to hang out with her. "I could always go with you and sit while you eat. You're also more than welcome to eat some of the food from my ground turkey sweet potato skillet." It occurred to her that Finn was dating someone and she wanted to be considerate of Cathy. "Are you sure that it would be okay to hang out though? How would Cathy feel about that?"

"It should be fine. I mean I've told Cathy that you're just one of the guys, so it shouldn't be a big deal." That comment frustrated Carson. She just wished that Finn saw her as more than one of the guys. She probably wasn't helping herself in the matter. While Cathy always wore the most beautiful and elegant clothes and looked like a ten, Carson liked wearing t-shirts, skinny jeans, and sneakers. She didn't really like wearing makeup either; she just wore it whenever she had a media appearance or if she was on television. Finn was taken, so she wasn't entirely sure why she was comparing herself to his girlfriend.

"You know what? I feel like going out and grabbing a beer, so let's go to one of the local bar and grills. Let me just go put up my food."

The first ever Universal champion watched as his friend headed to the kitchen to put up her leftovers. "It'll be nice to wind down for one more night before be get busy this weekend with Takeover and The Royal Rumble. I'm not sure if know this or not, but I'm supposed to be in attendance for Takeover. It'll be cool to see you and Jade wrestle your Falls Count Anywhere match up close and personal."

"Yeah, I know, Jade told me this afternoon whenever we had lunch." Carson grabbed the Tupperware containers that contained her dinner and tossed them in the fridge. She grabbed her converse and placed them on her feet. "Alright, you ready to go?"

"I'm ready whenever you are." Carson and Finn got up from their respective seats and got into his car heading to the bar and grill that was just down the road from Carson's condo. This was a good way for her to start the weekend that was going to be full of excitement.

* * *

 **AN:** **I hope you all enjoy this. Thanks for clicking on this fic. Any favorites, follows, and reviews I may get, I will be extremely grateful for.**


	2. NXT Takeover: Phoenix

**AN:** **Thanks so much for all the love last chapter. And for the record, this is probably the second wrestling match I've ever wrote, so I hope I did alright. Hope you all enjoy this chapter.**

* * *

 **SOMEWHERE I BELONG  
** NXT Takeover: Phoenix

* * *

Saturday finally arrived; which meant that it was the day of the Takeover:Phoenix pay-per-view. During the bigger events such as pay-per-views, it was required for the talent to dress up in more formal attire. Carson and Jade arrived to the Talking Stick Resort Arena early because they were scheduled to meet up with a mystery producer to go over their Falls Count Anywhere match. Carson arrived to the arena with her long brown hair into a side braid, her black rayban frames covering her face, a black baby doll dress with a leather jacket over it and her black converse on her feet. Jade arrived to the arena with her long brown hair running down her back in loose curls, a navy blue long sleeve shirt, a turquoise maxi flowing floral skirt, and brown booties on her feet that were hidden underneath the skirt.

The women set their bags down in the women's locker room and walked to one of the tables in catering. Per Hunter, that would be where Carson and Jade would meet the producer who would help them go over their match. When the women got to the table, their expressions mirrored one another. They were both awestruck at the presence of Mick Foley sitting at the table. The Hardcore Legend was flanked by Finn Balor and Seth Rollins, whom both were sipping on coffee; surprised Carson and Jade with their presence.

"The great Mick Foley is the one who is going to be helping us with the final touches of mine and Carson's match? This is such an honor." Jade looked to Finn, who was flanking the left side of the Hardcore Legend. "Not that it's not nice to see you brother because it is, but, what are you doing here at the show so early?" Then she turned her attention to the current Universal champion. "And, to what do we owe the pleasure of having Seth Freaking Rollins in our presence?"

"When Hunter offered me the job of being one of the leading producers of NXT, there was no way I was going turn it down. That man has the power of persuasion. There was a catch though." Carson and Jade furrowed their eyebrows at Mick, who merely smirked at them. "The catch was that I would be the one allowed to help you two ladies go over your Falls Count Anywhere match. I've been following you two in NXT and there is such potential laying within you two and I want to help you reach it. Myself, along with these two excellent gentlemen right here are going to make sure that your full potential is reached tonight and that you tear the roof off of this place."

Carson and Jade looked at each other with the same flabbergasted expression. Neither one of them couldn't believe that Mick Foley personally wanted to work with them. You know you're doing something right when one of the all time greats wants to work with you and holds you in high regards to what you do. It was also shocking that Finn and Seth wanted a hand in helping produce their match when they both had big matches of their own to prepare for tomorrow at the Royal Rumble. Well, both knew about The Demon King being attendance in the show later, but the presence of The Kingslayer was totally unexpected.

Seth took a sip of his coffee and looked at a Jade, a smile on his face. "Your brother and I got to talking yesterday on the plane and we thought it would be awesome if we had a hand in helping you with your match too. We talked to Hunter and he was on board with the idea of us helping you out. I know what you and Carson are capable of of, because hell, you two came up with most of the ideas for your match; however, like Mick, we want to help you two reach your full potential."

Jade couldn't help but smile at Seth, her cheeks feeling hot. "Thank you, that means so much."

Finn looked at Carson, whom he never really seen in a dress before. She still had her sporty rocker vibe happening, but she looked different wearing a dress and the leather jacket added a nice touch. "You look nice, Carson." He mentally slapped himself for complimenting out loud. He had a girlfriend and he didn't want Carson to take what he said the wrong way. She was merely a bud to him. But dang, if she didn't look good today with her bare legs showing. Finn shook his head and immediately got rid of any thoughts of Carson that weren't platonic.

Carson's face turned bright red, not used to hearing compliments from her crush. She knew better than to think anything of it because he made it perfectly clear two nights ago that she was nothing more than 'one of the guys.' "Thanks, Finn. I appreciate it."

"Enough with the love fest," Mick interjected. "We have a Falls Count Anywhere match to plan. Between the five of us, we are going to make sure that Carson Woodard vs Jade Balor is going to be a match the WWE Universe talks about for years to come."

Carson, Finn, Jade, and Seth all smiled and nodded their heads, taking their seats at the round table with the Hardcore Legend. Finn sat to the right of Mick with Carson taking a seat beside him. Jade took a seat beside Carson and to her right was The Kingslayer who was sitting on the left of Mick. Carson took out the outline out of her jacket pocket that her and Jade worked on and laid it in the middle of the table. The five of them started discussing more details for the Falls Count Anywhere match.

* * *

Avery arrived to the Talking Stick Resort Arena with Adam. Avery was dressed in a long sleeved see through white lace shirt with a white cami underneath, peach maxi skirt, and biege heels. Her long brown and blonde hair was in loose waves. Adam was dressed in a gray dress shirt with a black blazer over it, black dress pants, and black dress shoes. His hair was up in his signature bun. They saw Carson and Jade sitting with Mick Foley, Seth Rollins, and Finn Balor in the catering area and while that peaked their curiosity, they didn't want to pry and just merely waved at the five sitting at the table.

"Avery, I need to speak with you for a minute." Adam and Avery turned around and saw Triple H standing behind them, a smile on his face. Avery looked to Adam who gave her a smile and nod and headed towards his destination to the locker room area. "Let me take that for you." Hunter took Avery's silver glittery suitcase and rolled it behind him to his office. "This suitcase so matches my beard and suit." Avery laughed at her boss. Regardless of the rumors about Hunter, he was a good guy who wanted to see his talent on NXT succeed in the WWE and learn all they needed to know about the company before heading to the main roster.

Hunter opened the door to his office, letting Avery walk through first. Avery thanked him and took her suitcase from him. "Thanks for rolling my suitcase in here; you didn't have to do that." She took a seat in one of the black chairs sitting in front of Hunter's desk and crossed her right leg over her left. Her suitcase was to the right of her.

"It's alright, I didn't mind at all." The Game shut the door to his office and took a seat in the big black leather office chair that was positioned behind his desk. A serious demeanor came across his face and Avery became nervous. "I wanted to talk to you about tonight's six pack challenge. I know that you and the other five ladies already have the match planned out besides the finish because you don't know who is going to be winning." A smile came upon The King of Kings' face. "I'm informing you that tonight, Avery Kelly is going to become the new NXT women's champion."

Both of Avery's brows furrowed and her mouth became agape. "You're kidding, right?"

"I'm deadserious. The reason why it took so long for you ladies to know about the winner of the match is because I took serious consideration in who I wanted to win. While all of you ladies all have good qualities and there would be no wrong choice in who will win the match, I think you are the right choice to win the six pack challenge. You have worked so hard and you never complain about your job. I know it bothers you that people still think of you just as 'Kelly Kelly's little sister,' but I want you to know that you are so much more than that. You train so hard and are improving leaps and bounds each week. When you came to me for approval on using the dragonrana, I was surprised and intrigued at the same time. You wanted to try something new and there was no way I was going to turn that down. So, what I'm try to say is... I chose you because of how hard of a worker you are and I feel like you should be rewarded for it."

Avery felt her her hazel eyes tearing up. She cupped her mouth with her hands, soaking in what Hunter just informed her about. She felt humbled knowing that her boss thought she was a hardworker and that she deserved to be NXT women's champion. "Hunter, you have no idea how much that means to me. I will be forever grateful that you're giving me this opportunity. You will not regret choosing me to leave Takeover:Phoenix as the NXT women's champion."

The Game smiled. "I just need you to do one favor for me though."

"Absolutely. What can I do for you?"

"I want you to keep it a secret that you're winning tonight. The only people that need to know is you ladies who are participating in the six pack challenge. I know that you are probably dying to tell Adam and Kelly, but I want the genuine reaction from everyone whenever you win and become the new NXT women's champion. At least Candice knows though since she is in the match."

"I can keep it a secret." Avery nodded her head. "I think it'll send shockwaves throughout NXT that I am going to be the new champion. A lot of people say that I am the underdog heading into the match."

"Exactly. That's why I don't want anyone else to know about who is going to win."

"Understood."

"Okay, well that is all I wanted to talk to you about." He sat up from his seat and walked to his door and opened it. Avery got up from her seat, her suitcase in tow. The Game extended his hand, wanting to shake hands with Avery. Avery shook hands with him and smiled. "Good luck tonight Avery. I know that you women are going to kill it out there. Considering that you're match is the opening match, I think that this will be one of; if not, the greatest Takeover ever. We have a stacked card tonight."

"I agree. Well, thank you so much Hunter. I will not let you down tonight."

"I know you won't. See you later Avery." With that said, Avery left Hunter's office with the door shutting behind her on the way out.

Avery walked down the hallway, her suitcase rolling behind her, a bright smile on her beautiful face as she walked towards the women's locker room. Tonight was going to go down as one of the greatest nights in her life. She hoped that after tonight, people would see her as being more than Kelly Kelly's little sister.

* * *

The time was 7:30pm, which meant that is was the Takeover:Phoenix preshow. The panel was filled with Charly Caruso, Corey Graves, and Renee Young. There was a poll on twitter to see who would join Charly at the preshow panel and Corey and Renee both won by a landslide. Carson Woodard was going to be the first guest at the panel.

Charly looked to her panel partners, "So, Corey, Renee, there is a Falls Count Anywhere match happening tonight between Carson Woodard and Jade Balor. Many of the WWE Universe believe that this is the most personal match on the card."

Renee nodded her head in agreement. "I'd have to agree with that. These two women have been at each other's throats since September and it's now January. So, that's four months of animosity between Carson and Jade. This Falls Count Anywhere match between them is going to be chaotic. Quite frankly, these two women are going to be the hell out of each other."

There was a video clip of Jade breaking up the count that Carson had on NXT women's champion, Shayna Baszler. Corey pointed to the video clip. "See, that wouldn't have happened to Carson if she had just accepted Jade's offer earlier in the night to form an alliance. To blow off someone who's cold and caluclating like Jade was not a smart move on Carson's part. Jade was just trying to beat some sense into Carson."

Renee shook her head. "No, Corey, that was robbery. Jade cost Carson that match on purpose because Jade's a woman who retaliates against someone who doesn't do as she wants."

"I agree with Renee, Corey. What Jade did to Carson is reprehensible."

"What Jade did to Carson was reprehensible? What Carson did to Jade was reprehensible. She turned down an alliance with the Green Goddess. That's career suicide that Carson committed. Because of Carson's actions she did not become the NXT women's champion."

Renee rolled her eyes. "You're actually condoning Jade's behavior?" Another clip showed on the screen of Jade powerbombing Carson through the announcer's table. "That powerbomb was with authority and left Carson with a back injury."

Corey held up his hands in defense, "It's not my fault that Carson has a delicate back and couldn't handle being powerbombed through a table."

"What is Jade paying you to be on her side, Graves?" Renee couldn't believe that Corey had the audacity to side with Jade after all the hell she put Carson through. "She has done nothing but make Carson's life miserable."

A video clip came onto the screen of the referee counting to ten as Carson and Jade were fighting through the audience at the last Takeover pay-per-view that occurred back in November. Charly looked at the screen before looking back to Corey and Renee. "General Manager, William Regal decided to make this a Falls Count Anywhere match due to the double countout in Carson and Jade's match at the last Takeover."

"I think this match is going to tear the house down tonight!" Renee exclaimed. "These ladies might not like each other, but they know how to put on a show."

"I think Jade Balor is going to come out victorious tonight. Jade is calculating and this kind of match where anything goes has got to be in her favor. She's going to use her surroundings in her favor," Corey explained. "I don't think Carson stands a chance against Jade."

"We'll see what Carson thinks about that because here she is." Charly stood up so Carson could get by her and take a seat.

Carson was ready in her ring attire for the evening. Her long brown hair was braided at the top of her head and it flowed into a ponytail in the back. She had on a black heart bust leather halter top and red and black spandex pants with lacing. Her makeup was matching well with her attire. She had black eyeshadow on which made her blue eyes pop and red lipstick that matched the red to her pants.

"Welcome, Carson." Renee waved to the brunette. Carson waved back to Renee. "Are you ready for your Falls Count Anywhere match against Jade tonight?"

Carson picked up the microphone that was in front of her and held it to her lips. "Let me tell you, I have never been ready for a fight so much in life. This has been four months in the making. All this built up frustration and anger I have built up, I am going to take it all out on her."

Corey looked at Carson, appalled by what she just said. "I don't mean to be rude, Carson, but none of this would've started if you would've just aligned yourself with Jade in the first place. But, you ended up committing career suicide because you didn't win the NXT women's championship from Shayna Baszler and then you were out for a month with a sustaining back injury you got after being powerbombed through a table by Jade."

"I didn't win the NXT women's championship from Shayna because that little witch decided to put her nose in my business and cost me the match. And as far as her giving me that back injury, that worked out in my favor. I had time to sit at home and recuperate and prepare myself for how I was going to get back at that little Green Goddess."

"You definitely prepared yourself for Jade because since you've been back at the beginning of this year, you've been the one standing tall after all the brawls you and Jade have been in," Charly stated. "If you keep that mentality, then there's a good chance of you being the victor of the Falls Count Anywhere match."

"Charly, there's not a good chance of me of winning the match, it's guaranteed that I am going to win this match."

Renee nodded her head. "I like your way of thinking. Good luck in your match tonight, Carson."

"Thanks, Renee."

Corey rolled his eyes and looked into the camera. "If Jade Balor is watching this right now, I would like to wish her good luck in the match tonight."

Charly rolled her eyes at Corey and then looked back to Carson, a smile on her face. "Good luck, tonight, Carson. Thanks for joining us at the preshow panel."

"Thanks, Charly. I appreciate you and Renee being on my side." She looked over to Corey, a smirk on her face. "I'm sorry that you have poor taste in character, Graves." She walked away, getting ready for her match later on in the evening.

"A very game Carson Woodard tonight. That match between her and Jade Balor is going to be epic."

* * *

Takeover was in progress, the show just in the beginning. The elimination six pack challenge for the NXT women's championship was the first match of the night. There had been chants of "Women's wrestling," "Let's go, Candice," "Let's go, Avery," "Let's go, Bianca," Let's go, Lacey," "Let's go Shayna, Shayna sucks," "Toni Storm," and "this is awesome." It was just down to two competitors: Avery Kelly and Candice LeRae.

Lacey Evans had been the first woman to be eliminated after the hair whip by Bianca Belair knocked her out cold. Bianca Belair was eliminated next after Shayna Baszler came up from behind and locked her in her signature sleeper hold. In a shocker to the WWE Universe, Shayna Baszler was eliminated by Avery Kelly after Avery nailed her with a reverse STO which she calls The Fallout. The crowd cheered in delight as Shayna was eliminated from the six pack challenge. Shayna did not take being eliminated so easy because she attacked Avery, throwing her arm into the steel ring post and then locking in the armbar. That left Candice and Toni alone in the ring for quite some time since Avery was out of the equation at the moment. Toni was eventually eliminated after Candice finished her off the Candice LeRae's wild ride swinging neckbreaker from the second rope.

Candice irish whipped Avery into the corner, but her momentum was stopped when Avery double booted Candice in the chest as Candice was running towards her in full speed. Candice clutched her chest and kneeled down on the mat, trying to catch her breath and regain composure. In another shocking move, Avery climbed up to the top turnbuckle, which is something she is not known for.

She could hear the audience cheer and rise to their feet as she was on the top rope. Candice came staggering towards her, but it didn't worked out as planned as Avery nailed Candice with a perfect dragonrana much to the amusement and shock of the crowd. Avery only hooked one of Candice's legs considering her arm was still damaged from the wrath of Shayna Baszler and she heard the most wonderful countdown ever. "One, two, three." The referee had counted to three and the crowd immediately came back unglued from their seat as a new NXT women's champion was crowned.

Avery laid down on the mat, flabbergasted by the events that just took place. She couldn't believe it, she was the new NXT women's champion. The sound of "I've Got The Power" by Fireflight blaring through the speakers and the sound of a standing ovation was enough to make Avery come back to reality. She clutched the title with her good arm, stood up tall and raised the belt up high in the air. The happy tears starting coming down.

She spotted her sister sitting in the very front row, tears in her eyes too and Avery got out of the ring and embraced her sister much to the delight of the of fans. Kelly cupped her sister's face. None of the crowd could hear what Kelly was telling Avery except for Avery herself. "I am so proud of you, you have worked so hard for this moment."

Avery let her sister hug her one last time before she walked up the ramp and soaked in the crowds adulation of her becoming the new champion.

She got backstage and she was immediately embraced by Hunter. He cupped her face. "I am so proud of you. I knew I made the right decision making you the new champion. Good showing tonight, Avery. You are going to do amazing being the NXT women's champion. Now please forgive me, but we need to take a post-match picture."

Avery laughed. "Of course, I figured that was coming." She was dressed in a pink glittery bustier along with pink glittery spandex shorts; which she had planned specifically for tonight. The pink eyeshadow she wore made her hazel eyes sparkle. Her hair was in perfect curls, but they were ruined for the most part due to the matted sweat and humidity in the arena. Hunter stood beside her and looped his arm around her and she held out the title with her 'good arm.' Both of her arms were good, but she still had to play it up for the camera that she had a hurt arm. Both had a smile on their face.

"Congrats, Avery, I'm proud of you."

"Thank you, Hunter."

Walking away from the gorilla, she saw her best friend and gave her the biggest hug ever. "Thank you so much, Candice. If it wasn't for you, I wouldn't be NXT women's champion."

Candice let go of Avery's embrace and furrowed her eyebrow. "What are you talking about, Av? You earned this championship all by yourself."

"Yeah, right!" The new NXT women's champion scoffed. "If it wasn't for you helping me train and agreeing to put me over during the match, I wouldn't have survived this match. But, thanks to you, I became a stronger competitor and hung with the best women competitors in NXT."

"You doubt yourself too much, Av. In order to become a good competitor, you have to have the willpower to become better. You have so much passion and the desire to want to learn. Whatever you may think, you earned this title all by yourself. I'm happy for you."

Avery hugged Candice again. "I love you, Candice. You are the best friend I've ever had."

"I love you too. Now, quit with the sappiness before you make me cry."

Avery and Candice broke apart their hug and headed towards their respective destinations. Avery was still on her high and didn't pay attention as she bumped into a broad chest. Hazel eyes looked into steel blue ones. "Hey."

"Hey, champ. Congratulations on the win." Adam put his arm around Avery and pulled her to his side as they walked. "How come you didn't tell me that you were going to win?"

Avery could sense some hurt in Adam's voice and she felt guilty for not telling him, but she promised Hunter she wouldn't tell anybody. "I didn't know until this morning that I was going to be the winner. That was what Hunter pulled me into his office for. I'm sorry I didn't tell you, I promised I wouldn't say anything. He wanted a genuine reaction from everyone."

"Fair enough. I should've known something was up because you're always so eager to tell me something if it's huge news. After I win my match tonight, we definitely need to go out and celebrate." Adam was defending his NXT North American Championship against Ricochet. He was scheduled to beat Ricochet due to interference from the rest of the Undisputed Era.

"Is it okay if Candice, Johnny, and my sister come? Hell, tell the rest of the Undisputed Era they can come. They can even bring their significant others."

"You invite Candice, Johnny, and Kelly. I'll tell the guys about it. Phoenix is not going to know what to do with us Bay-Bay."

Avery rolled her eyes and chuckled. "You're such a goofball, Cole."

Adam unwrapped his arm from around Avery. "Well, congrats best friend. I'll see you after my match." His kissed her on the cheek before walking away. Usually he would kiss her cheek and everything would be fine, but for some reason; this time she felt all fluttery in her stomach as his lips pressed against her cheek.

* * *

The first two matches were going to be hard to follow in Carson and Jade's opinion. There was already a feel good moment provided with Avery winning the NXT women's championship. Carson and Jade were ecstatic for Avery. She worked so hard to improve and set out to prove that she is so much more than Kelly Kelly's little sister. They knew she was tired of being labeled with that.

Of course, Adam Cole and Ricochet being who they are, already provided a match with a bunch of incredible moments. Carson and Jade had the confidence they could top the two men and provide an instant classic. After all, they put plenty of thought into the match and had help from three of the best ever in Mick Foley, Seth Rollins, and Finn Balor. Seth and Finn were going to be in the crowd too, so the women hoped they didn't disappoint.

"Alright, ladies, you ready to tear the house down?" Hunter questioned. "It's time to show everyone why I trusted you two to be in a Falls Count Anywhere match."

The guitar riffs of "Fading Away" by Fivefold blared through the system and the crowd exploded at the sight of Carson coming through the curtain. She appeared at the top of the ramp, doing the rock on sign and sticking her tongue out. She walked the down the aisle, slapping the hands of the audience along the way to the ring. She ran underneath the bottom rope and ran to the top turnbuckle and held up both of her hands in the air with the rock on sign.

Once the crowd heard the lyrics, 'From the moment she laid her eyes on me, I knew how dangerous she could be,' from Digital Summer's 'so beautiful, so evil," the crowd popped. Jade was impressed with the fact that no matter with how evil her character was, she still managed to receive a positive reaction to the crowd during her entrance. She walked onto the stage and the crowd cheered. She was dressed in a green one piece metallic body suit with metallic leaves attached, green tights, and green knee high boots that were moccasin like. She was wearing bright sparkly green lipstick and green sparkly eyeshadow. She sneered at the crowd as she walked to the ring with one hand on her hip. She walked up the stairs and climbed under the bottom rope. She walked around the ring, her hands on her hips as she was looking at the audience with a sneer on her face.

The women got in their respective corners and the referee called for the bell to ring. The bell rang and the match was underway. Carson and Jade got caught in an elbow tie up and they spun around the ring until Jade landed on the outside. Carson took a couple of steps back and looked at the crowd for approval. She ran going through the second and top rope landing a perfect suicide dive onto Jade. The audience gave a round of applause.

Carson lifted Jade up from the floor and threw her back first into the barricade. Carson ran and attempted to clothesline Jade over the balcony, but Jade countered and kicked Carson in the stomach. That gave Jade enough time to recuperate. Not for long though as Carson comes flying down the barricade wall with a diving clothesline.

Carson picked up Jade from the floor and got her positioned for a suplex on the ramp; however, that was countered by Jade and Carson was the one was suplexed onto the hard floor. Carson cried out in pain as she clutched her back. Jade smiled, knowing she had an opening. It was time for her to become calculating.

She grabbed Carson by the hair and grabbed her arm, launching her into the steel steps. Carson once again clutched her back. Jade taunted to the crowd and was responded with cheers and boos.

Jade attempted to grab Carson by the hair again, but wasn't successful as Carson leg swept Jade onto the ground. Carson was still clutching her back, but with adrenaline running on high, she jumped onto the second rope, flipping backwards and planting Jade onto the ground with a picture perfect springboard reverse DDT. The crowd cheered as they chanted "holy shit, holy shit."

Carson gingerly went for the cover, getting only a two count from the referee. Carson slowly got up, trying to lift up Jade. Carson wasn't aware that Jade grabbed a kendo stick from under the ring. Reality hit when Jade hit Carson in the back, then in the leg, and again on the back as Carson cried out in pain laying on the ground. Jade threw the kendo stick down and went for the pin. Carson kicked out at two.

Carson tried crawling up the ramp, but Jade was stalking her like prey as she regained possession of the kendo stick. Kendo stick shots were being heard in the arena and Carson yelped out in pain as her back was being targeted. Pain shooting through her back, but not wanting to get hit with a kendo stick again, Carson found the strength to roll over on her back and kick Jade in the stomach. While Jade clutched her stomach, Carson seized the opportunity and grabbed the kendo stick from Jade. Carson hit Jade in the stomach with the kendo stick, making the Green Goddess come down onto her knees on the stage.

Both women laid there for a minute, regaining their composure. Jade got up ran off the ramp and ran to the backstage area. Carson followed suit and speared her onto a table in the makeup area. Carson threw some punches and rolled off the table. She then grabbed Jade by her hair and threw her into a wall.

The two women exchanged punches with one another until they were in the crowd. Jade spinkicked Carson in the stomach and then grabbed her by her hair and threw her across the area. She proceeded to stomp down on Carson's back. Finding an empty steelchair nearby, Carson folded the chair and stabbed Jade in the stomach. Jade groaned and rolled to the floor. Carson punished Jade by giving her steelchair shots along her back. Seeing that Jade was down for a minute, Carson climbed up some of the stairs in the audience and climbed on one of the railings. She landed on Jade with a corkscrew moonsault, much to the delight of the crowd.

Carson went for the cover, but somehow Jade managed to kickout at two. Growing frustrated at this point, Carson wasn't entirely sure what it would take to put Jade down once and for all.

Carson set up some empty steel chairs side by side in a row, but her momentum was stopped by Jade forearmed her from behind. Jade lifted Carson up and gave her a backbreaker along the row of chairs. Carson clutched her back again, feeling the pain from punishment her back received. Then, Jade being the calculating woman she was, slid Carson's right leg through the bottom of the stretching it out and placing her in the submission heel hold, which she calls the Vinyl Tap. Carson screamed out in pain, not knowing what to do. There was no ropes beside her and her back was hurting.

Unfortunately, there was only one thing she could do. She tapped out.

Jade let go of the heel hook and took a breather on the ground as she was relieved that this match was over. "So beautiful, so evil" played through the speakers and the crowd cheered for Jade. Mostly out of respect for the intense match she put on with Carson.

Finn watched in the crowd as his sister was victorious in her match against Carson. Those two put on a match for the ages and he couldn't feel more proud of them. He knew that Carson and Jade were going to be the future of the women's division. He looked over at Seth, who had the same look of admiration on his face. The two stood up and gave a standing ovation along with the rest of the crowd.

Jade was his sister and he was going to congratulate her after her victory. But, he knew he needed to check on Carson too, considering how impressive she was with her high-flying moves.

That was going to be a problem for him to check on Carson though. Because, after he and Seth along with Mick Foley, helped Carson and Jade with planning their match, he was confronted by his girlfriend. Cathy told him she didn't like Carson and that she didn't want him to hang out with Carson in any way.

He wasn't sure why, but it really bothered him that Cathy disliked Carson.

* * *

 **AN:** **Feel free to favorite, follow, or review. Thanks.**


	3. Royal Rumble

**AN:** **Thanks for the love on this story. I hope everyone is enjoying it.**

* * *

 **SOMEWHERE I BELONG  
** Royal Rumble

* * *

'Boomerang' by The Summer Set rang through the speaker of Jade's Samsung Galaxy, scaring both Jade and Carson who were sound asleep in their motel room. Jade groaned and reached for her phone. "Hello?"

"Wake up, Sunshine." The energetic voice of Seth Rollins emerged on the other end. "We're going to get in a good workout before he have to be at the Arena. Your brother, Bayley, Sheamus, Cesaro, Noam, and Becky are coming along too. Ask Carson if she wants to come along. But even if she says no, you're still coming with me."

Jade groaned. "I'm starting to dislike you, Rollins."

"You'll thank me later," The Universal Champion laughed. "Wake up cause I am going to be in your room in about ten minutes."

"You don't even know where my room is at. So good luck with that."

"Finn told me where you were at."

"I am going to kill my brother." Seth laughed at her statement and she merely rolled her eyes. "We may end up having one less person working out this morning."

"C'mon, you know your brother has your best interest at heart. Now wake up and get dressed so we can go get our workout on."

"Geez, a guy becomes Universal Champion and thinks he rules the world," Jade teased. "I guess I need to get up and get dressed so I can please your highness."

Seth rolled his eyes. "Someone is not a morning person."

"When it's six-thirty in the morning, not really."

"Don't forget to ask Carson if she wants to go. I'll see you ladies soon."

"Alright, Rollins." She pressed the end button to end their conversation. She looked over to Carson who was rubbing at her eyeballs. "Seth, Noam, Bayley, Cesaro, Becky, and my brother are all going to workout this morning. Would you like to go?"

Carson's heart thumped at the mention of Finn. "Even though it's too damn early, sure. I have wanted to try crossfit." Carson rolled out of the bed and went to her suitcase to get out a workout outfit that consisted of black Nike capri leggings, a black Nike sports bra, a gray tanktop to put over her sports bra, and gray nike tennishoes. She also had on her trademark black rayban glasses.

Jade went to her suitcase to find herself a workout outfit too. She pulled out a pair of navy floral leggings, a navy blue Under Armour sports bra, a white tanktop to wear over her sports bra, and black Under Armour tennishoes.

Right as soon as they were dressed and ready to go, they heard a knock on the door. Jade went to the door and saw a smiling Seth Rollins on the other side. His breath caught in his throat for a minute at the sight of the youngest Balor sibling standing before him. She was absolutely beautiful whenever she first wakes up. "Ready to go? Is Carson coming along?"

As if on cue, Carson comes to the door. "I'm coming along. I've wanted to try Crossfit, so I'm excited about going with everyone." Although she was most excited about seeing an Irishman with a killer smile.

"Great! We're excited to have you come along. The more the merrier." Seth held onto the door so Jade and Carson could walk out. The Universal Champion walked alongside Jade as Carson walked behind them. Carson took note of this and smiled.

* * *

Avery woke up looking at her phone first thing. She saw that she had a text message from Adam that he just sent about five minutes ago that said, _'Up early this morning, wanted to see if you wanted to grab breakfast if you happen to be up. I'll give you thirty minutes and if you're not up, I'll just go get breakfast without you.'_

She scoffed. He knew that she loved breakfast food. But, she also couldn't blame him for wanting to eat if he was also up. She replied to his text. 'I happen to be awake right now. Of course I'm down for breakfast. Have you met me?'

An immediate response came. _'Your love for breakfast is unparalleled, I know. I'm glad you're up. Looks like it was fate for you to have breakfast this morning.'_

'Duh! Of course it was. I'll get up and get dressed. Kelly is still knocked out so I'll just leave her a note and tell her where I'm going.'

 _'She must've partied a little too hard last night. LOL!'_

'You know my sister is the life of the party. I wouldn't expect anything less from her.'

 _'I'm getting dressed right now. I'll be at your room in about twenty minutes.'_

'Okay, sounds good. See you then.'

Avery got out of the bed and went to her suitcase to find something comfortable yet cute enough to wear to breakfast. She grabbed a pair of white torn skinny jeans, a dark gray sweater, and nude pink ballet flats and went to the bathroom to get a quick shower.

About twenty minutes later, she got a text from Adam saying that he was at the door but he didn't want to knock and wake Kelly up. Avery grabbed her her gray north face jacket and tossed over shoulders. She grabbed her mini brown purse and tossed it over head, careful not to mess up her bun. She opened the door and on the other side was her best friend dressed in a black north face coat that was zipped up, blue jeans, and black sneakers. It was January and still winter but Arizona was known for being somewhat mild, so they didn't have to dress up too warm, much like in Florida.

"You ready to eat some breakfast?" Adam asked. He walked alongside Avery.

"Yes, I am freaking starving right now."

* * *

Seth, Jade, Becky, Bayley, Sheamus, Cesaro, Noam, Finn, and Carson all walked into a place called 'Core Crossfit.' Finn was shocked whenever he saw Carson get out of the vehicle along with Seth and Jade. He rode to the gym with Becky, Bayley, Sheamus, Cesaro, and Noam. But, he was more excited to see her than he would let on. He hadn't had a chance to speak to her after her match with his sister and he wanted to see how she was feeling and tell her she did a wonderful job selling for Jade.

He saw Carson getting some equipment together and took a chance to approach her. "Carson," the Irishman called out to her. She sat her equipment down and then proceeded to look in his direction. "Can I talk to you for a minute?"

"Of course you can. What's up?"

Finn rubbed the back of his neck, which was a habit of his whenever he was nervous. He shouldn't be nervous around Carson; she was one of his buddies, much like Gallows, Anderson, Seth, Noam, Sheamus and Cesaro were. "I never had a chance to talk to you after yours and Jade's match, but I wanted to tell you that you did an awesome job. Are you feeling okay?"

Carson smiled. "Thank you. I couldn't have done it without her. We did a lot of planning together and I think it turned out to be a good match. And, I'm feeling a little better today, just still a little sore. Jade and I were talking about how kendo shots, steel chair shots, and landing on a hard floor didn't feel particularly great."

"No, it doesn't," The Irishman agreed with a laugh. "So, it's a nice surprise to see you here. What made you decide to tag along?"

The younger woman shrugged her shoulders. "Jade asked if I wanted to come along and I've been wanting to do Crossfit. So, the opportunity presented itself and now here I am."

"I'm surprised my sister hasn't killed me yet. I was the one who told Seth what room you and Jade were staying in."

"Don't worry, the wheels are turning in her head I'm sure. The day is not over with yet."

Finn laughed. "That's true. Well, I guess I should get my equipment together so I won't be left out of this session."

"That might be a good idea. I'll let you get to it then. Thanks again for the compliment and asking if I was okay."

"No problem. That's what friends are for."

Carson wanted to frown, but she couldn't at the moment with the object of her affection still was looking at her. It would be nice if one day there would be more between them. But, he had a beautiful girlfriend and he knew that he would never be interested in her like that anyways.

She finished setting up her equipment beside Cesaro and she was shocked to see Finn coming and setting up his stuff beside her. He gave her a smile and wink and she thought she felt her panties soaked. Nobody's smile beat Finn's at least in her opinion.

Everyone was lined up and ready to get their sweat on for the morning.

* * *

Avery sat across from Adam at the nearest iHOP. Avery and Adam both got similar things: pancakes, eggs, a meat, and coffee; the only thing that was different was that Adam got turkey bacon and Avery got turkey sausage. "We riding to the arena together today?" Adam asked. He took a bite of his pancakes.

"If you want to." The NXT women's champion took the last bite of her eggs. She was hungrier than she thought.

"Somehow you've become my traveling buddy. Of course I want to."

"I mean you do have the whole Undisputed Era. They might be feeling lonely without their leader."

"I think they'll be just fine," Adam chuckled. "Plus, I don't know how my travel buddy will be able to function without me around."

"Your travel buddy will be a-okay without your presence. She's a strong, independent woman after all."

The NXT North American champion laughed. "That's hilarious. Because last night, she needed me to be her pretend boyfriend because some guy was harassing her."

"She made use of her resources. You were there and you weren't doing anything important so she just happen to take advantage of that fact. She is grateful that you came to her rescue. You are her knight in shining armor."

"Why are still referencing her in third person?" Adam wondered.

"Because it's fun." Avery took a sip of her coffee. "I don't know how we managed to refer me in third person without getting confused."

"I know, right?" Adam chuckled. "Especially you. It doesn't take much to get you confused, Avery."

Avery scoffed. "That's not very nice." She took the last piece of turkey bacon that was on his plate and stuffed it in her mouth. Adam shot her daggers. "What? That's what you get for being mean to me. Next time you'll think twice."

"You owe me for that piece of bacon."

Avery rolled her eyes. "It's not the end of the world."

* * *

Carson was sitting with Charly in catering. It was in the afternoon and all the talent had arrived to the Arena to get ready for the Royal Rumble. Carson and Charly decided to eat lunch together, so there they were, their food in front of them. Both ladies grabbed a grilled chicken salad to eat and water to drink. "How was the Crossfit workout this morning?" The RAW interview wondered.

"It went great. I had a good time."

"I'm sure you did, especially since Finn was there. I saw how he stood beside you in that picture that Seth put on his Instagram page." After the morning workout was done, Seth wanted everyone to get a group picture. They were lined up in a row with Jade, Seth, Bayley, Becky, Sheamus, Cesaro, Noam, Finn, and Carson standing together in that order.

"It doesn't mean anything. He's never going to see me as anything more than a friend." She took a bite from her salad. "As a matter of fact, I need to get over this stupid crush I have on him. He's in a relationship."

Charly rolled her eyes. "They break up and get back together all the time. I don't understand how they haven't broke up for good yet."

"Maybe her lady parts are made of gold," Carson stated seriously. Charly snorted out the water she just took a sip of. "Sorry, I don't mean to be rude, but I just get how two people can be together if all they do is just breakup every other day." So, she may have been exaggerating, but Finn and Cathy were more often broke up than together it felt like.

"Carson, can I talk you?" Speaking of the devil; the voice of Cathy Kelley was present. "Hey, Charly." Cathy waved to Charly and smiled, which was reciprocated.

"Uh, sure." This was the first time that Cathy had ever spoken to Carson outside of an interview. Carson was feeling nervous.

Finn's girlfriend lead Carson to an area of catering that wasn't surrounded by superstars. "Let's get something straight, you will not go near Finn again."

"Wait, what?"

"Don't play dumb with me. I know you like Finn. You will not be allowed to be near him again."

"Finn is a grown man. He can hang out with whomever he wants. I wonder how he would feel knowing that you're manipulating me into not hanging out with him anymore."

"That won't be an issue because he's not going to know that this conversation ever existed."

"What do you mean?"

"You've tried so hard to keep your little crush on my boyfriend hidden, but I see right through that. I see how you look at him. It makes me sick. He will never want to be with someone who dresses like they found their clothes at the Salvation Army. If you ever think about going near him again, I will tell him about how your pathetic little crush and your friendship with him will evaporate."

Carson stared into the cold brown eyes of Cathy. She felt hot tears pricking in her blue eyes. "Fine, if that's what you want. I'll stay away from Finn."

"Great," Cathy smiled. "I knew we'd come to an understanding."

Little did they know, Jade Balor was at the makeup booth getting her hair and makeup done for the show. Jade heard every word that was exchanged between Carson and Cathy and she felt bad for Carson. She knew the poor woman had to be embarrassed. Now, Jade had a legitimate reason to tell Finn that Cathy was no good for him.

* * *

Avery sat in the locker room with her sister and The Bella Twins; all of them changing into their attire for the Royal Rumble. Avery, Kelly, Brie, and Nikki were all surprise entrants in the women's Royal Rumble match. "We should get some of the women together and go on a mini vacation somewhere," Nikki Bella insisted.

Avery, Kelly and Brie nodded their heads enthusiastically. "Where should we go?" Avery questioned. "Do you want to go somewhere tropical or somewhere mountainous?"

"Bora Bora would be a fun place to go," Brie Bella stated.

"Oh, yeah!" Kelly exclaimed. "That place is beautiful. Good idea, Brie."

Avery liked the idea of going to Bora Bora. Her sister had been plenty of times, but she'd never been. "Who are we going to ask to go?"

"Well, of course, there's going to be the four of us," Nikki answered. "Who else?"

"Jade, Paige, Alexa, Nia," Brie Bella answered. "They are my girls. They have to come."

"Candice has to come. She is my best friend," The NXT women's champion stated. "I also want Carson, Charly, Charlotte, and Becky to come."

Kelly smiled to her sister. "Maryse, Carmella, and Renee are must haves too. They always make trips exciting."

"And we have to have Nattie!" Nikki exclaimed. "She's always there whenever we plan extravagant trips like this. Naomi and Lana have to come too."

"Well, that's planned. After our Rumble, we'll get the women together and see if they're down for going," Brie said. "Which, I'm sure they'll all be down for a trip. Going away is always nice."

"I'm certainly down," Kelly agreed.

Avery nodded and chuckled. "Me too."

* * *

Carson walked through the gorilla to the backstage area after getting eliminated by Ruby Riott. She entered number eight and lasted for thirty minutes. Ruby had entered number fourteen and at the time, Carson was the only one in the ring since some of the other women were outside the ring but weren't eliminated. The two punk rockers had a stare down and the crowd came to their feet. Carson vs Ruby was a fantasy match for the WWE Universe due to their punk rock style and the crowd seeing those two face off was a treat.

Carson got some special attire made for tonight's event since it was one of the big pay-per-views and it was her first Rumble match she'd ever participated in. She wore a zebra printed lace up vest and two tone black and white leggings. Her long hair was down and straight, framing her face. She wore dark brown eyeshadow that made her blue eyes pop and black lipstick. She absolutely loved it whenever the WWE Glam Squad made her look fabulous. She generally wasn't a fan of wearing makeup, but she couldn't do her makeup like they could whenever she did wear it.

"Carson." She turned around and came face to face with the last person she needed to see; Finn Balor. He was dressed as The Demon King and Carson found him to be even hotter(if that was possible) than usual. Something about his face and body paint added mystique and she found him to be even more irresistible. "I just wanted to tell you that you had a wonderful showing in the Rumble match."

"Thanks," Carson replied sheepishly. She looked around to see if Cathy was around and luckily at this moment, she was not.

The Irishman took notice of how Carson was acting and furrowed his eyebrows. "Carson, are you okay?"

She gave him a little smile. "Umm, yeah, I'm great. I just have so much stuff to do. I'll see you around." In an instant she was gone much to the chagrin of the Demon King.

"I can't say I really blame her for leaving like that." Finn turned around coming face to face with his sister. She entered the Rumble at number thirteen and put on a good showing. She faced off with Becky Lynch much to the delight of the crowd. She also managed to eliminate Sasha Banks which surprised the WWE Universe. Jade ultimately got eliminated by the aforementioned Becky Lynch. Jade was wearing a bright green corset with leaves stitched into the seams, sparkly green tights, and bright green ankle boots. Her hair was in an elegant teased side braid, sparkly green lipstick, and sparkly green eyeshadow that did her blue eyes no justice. Wearing green was her specialty since her nickname was The Green Goddess.

"What are you talking about, sis?"

Jade motioned to the direction in which Carson went. "I can't blame Carson for acting sheepish just then and taking off. If I was in her shoes, I would've done the same thing."

Finn's lip turned into a thin line and his blue eyes became cloudy making his eyes turn more of a gray color. "What the hell is going on with Carson? Is she okay?"

"Why don't you ask your girlfriend?" The younger Balor sibling scoffed.

"What does Cathy have to do with Carson? Those two hardly speak a word to each other."

"Maybe not; however, when I was getting my makeup done earlier, Cathy sure said some words to Carson."

The Demon King's eyebrows furrowed. "What did Cathy say to Carson?"

"She basically degraded Carson by telling that her clothes were trash and that she needed to stay away from you or else."

"Carson and I are just friends," Finn insisted. "Cathy needs to get over her petty jealousy. We deal with this bullshit all the time."

"I know I shouldn't tell you how to live your life, but I wouldn't want to be with someone who can't accept my friends and doesn't want me to hang out with them." Jade shot her brother a sympathetic smile and patted his shoulder as she walked by him. She hoped that he would take what she said under consideration.

Finn sighed. He wanted to rub a hand down his face, but he didn't want to ruin his facepaint considering that he still had his own Rumble Match. Jade was right; he shouldn't waste his time with someone who couldn't accept his friends. It seemed as if Cathy was threatened by Carson and that piqued his interest.

* * *

Avery walked backstage, fresh from her elimination in the Royal Rumble. She entered the match at number eighteen and was eliminated by Shayna Baszler who entered the match at number nineteen. Avery and Shayna were playing up their feud that they would be having in the upcoming months leading to the next Takeover. Avery pitched the idea to Hunter about having a feud much alike to the one Trish Stratus and Jazz had. Feuding with the tough Jazz made Trish a more credible wrestler and people started taking Trish seriously during her feud with Jazz. A lightbulb went off in her head this morning while she was watching some old videos of Trish and Jazz on Youtube and pitched the idea to Hunter whenever she had arrived to the arena.

Hunter loved the idea and praised Avery for it. Hunter talked to Vince about some changes to the women's Royal Rumble match that would kickstart the intense rivalry between Avery and Shayna. Shayna drug Avery out of the ring and tossed her left arm into the ring post. Shayna then grabbed a steel chair and hit the NXT women's champion in the arm repeatedly. The Queen of Spades then tossed Avery back into the ring and threw Avery over the top rope like she was a piece of garbage. The crowd ended up being all over the former NXT women's champion case at the hideous display.

Avery was dressed in a silver holographic body suit with black and silver wrestling boots. Her left arm was bandaged up to sell her 'injury.' Her hair was in bouncy curls and half of it was up. She was rocking sparkly silver eyeshadow and pink lip gloss which she loved.

Waiting for her was her best friend and current NXT North American Champion: Adam Cole. He was sitting on one of the crate boxes that wasn't too far from the gorilla. His steel blue eyes met her electric hazel eyes. A proud smile was on his handsome face as he hopped of the box and approached her. "Great showing, champ." He gave her a congratulatory hug. Oddly, Adam felt his insides warm up as their bodies were pressed against each other.

She looked up at him and smiled. "Thanks, Adam. That means a lot coming from you."

"So, what's this rumor about you pitching an idea to Hunter about yours and Shayna's feud?"

Her eyes lit up. To say she was excited about this feud was an understatement. "Yeah, so, after you and I got done with breakfast this morning, I went back to my motel room and watched some old Trish Stratus vs Jazz videos on Youtube and a lightbulb went off in my head. I approached Hunter with idea of Shayna and I having this intense feud. I think it'll help me become a credible wrestler in the eyes of the fans."

"You're already good, Avery. I tell you that all the time."

"I appreciate that Adam, I really do, but you don't understand," Avery sighed. "You are so respected by everyone; peers and fans. You are this amazing athlete and everyone can see that. I want to be able to prove myself and this is the best way for me to do so. If I end up with a black eye or bruises here and there, it's so worth it. I told Shayna earlier not to hold back on me."

Adam chuckled. "You're going to be such a badass, Avery. Plus, I think you'll look hot sporting a black eye."

"Thanks," The NXT women's champion blushed.

"No problem," The Undisputed Era leader smiled. He started walking alongside her as they headed towards the direction of the locker rooms. "Tell me more about this Bora Bora trip you were telling me about before you had to go out there."

"Right!" Avery exclaimed. "So, Nikki came up with the idea of going on a trip. You know a girls' getaway after such a long work week. We have a couple of days off after Tuesday, so we are going to go on the trip then."

"Who's all going?"

"Nikki, Brie, Kelly, Me, Candice, Maryse, Lana, Naomi, Nattie, Paige, Jade, Carmella, Carson, Charly, Alexa, Nia, Nattie, Renee, Charlotte, and Becky."

"That's quite a crowd."

"Yep, it's going to be fun time. I'm pretty excited about it."

"I'm glad you are," Adam stated. "But, who am I supposed to Netflix and chill with while we're off these next couple of days?"

Avery rolled her eyes. "You had friends before me, Adam. I'm sure that the Undisputed Era misses their leader being around all the time."

Adam rolled his eyes and scoffed. "Yeah, right. All of them have wives and girlfriends. They don't need me around."

"What did you do with your time before you and I hung out all the time?"

"Wallowed in my misery about having no girlfriend after being with my ex for so long."

Avery frowned. "Oh. I'm sorry. Well, go home and visit your family. I'm sure they'll be excited to see you. And, if you want to talk, you can call or facetime me if you want to."

"That's a good idea, Avery," Adam smiled. "It would be nice to see my family. I haven't been to my hometown in a hot minute."

"I am starving though. How about after the show we go out and get some food?"

"Can't say no to that," The NXT North American Champion laughed. "They say the way to a man's heart is through his stomach."

Avery nodded her head and laughed, sinking in the words he'd just said.

* * *

 **AN:** **Hoped you enjoyed it.**


	4. Bora Bora

**AN:** **I appreciate all the love. Thank you.**

* * *

 **SOMEWHERE I BELONG  
** Bora Bora

* * *

Carson, Charly, Jade, Paige, Alexa, Nia, Lana, Naomi, Becky, Charlotte, Natalya, Renee, Nikki, Brie, Maryse, Carmella, Kelly, Avery, and Candice all found themselves on the lovely island of Bora Bora. The women were staying at the Four Seasons motel where they had oceanfront villas. There were three three bedroom oceanfront villas being rented out. Carson, Charly, Candice, Avery, Kelly, and Maryse shared one villa. Jade, Alexa, Paige, Nia, Charlotte, and Becky shared another villa. Brie, Nikki, Carmella, Nattie, Renee, Lana, and Naomi shared the last villa.

Candice, Carson, Jade, Alexa, Carmella, Becky, and Charlotte all decided to go snorkeling while the other women were going on a boat to take a tour of the beautiful island.

"Can I talk to you about something?" Carson asked Candice. Candice was someone Carson had went to whenever she dealt with problems since Charly was on the main roster. Even though Candice was Avery's best friend, and Jade and Charly were Carson's best friends'; Carson found Candice to be one of the best friends she had too.

"Of course. What's wrong?"

Carson sighed. "So, whenever we were at the Royal Rumble this past Sunday, Cathy confronted me and basically trashed my wardrobe and said I better stay away from Finn or else."

"You're kidding, right?" Mrs. Johnny Wrestling's mouth was slightly agape. "One, you don't dress trashy. I actually admire how you dress like yourself. You don't try too hard unlike Finn's girlfriend." Carson laughed at how Candice didn't even directly mention the woman's name. "And, two, if Finn can't see how she's acting then he's a twit. Has he tried talking to you recently?"

"Thanks," the brunette smiled. "He actually approached me at the Rumble after I was eliminated by Ruby. He said I put on a good showing. I was walking on pins and needles though because I didn't want the wicked witch to magically appear out of nowhere. I think he may have sensed how I was acting, but oh well. I just said I had stuff to do and hightailed it out of there."

"You shouldn't even have to deal with that. You and him are friends. She's not a very good girlfriend if she dictates who he can and cannot see."

Carson shrugged her shoulders. "It it what it is. I'm just glad to be away from that witch. She embarrassed me and made feel worthless."

"I'm sorry, Carson," Candice frowned. "No one should feel that way, especially you. You're one of the nicest and realest people I know. Don't let what she said bring you down. Just continue being the Carson Woodard we all know and love."

"You're the best," Carson stated with a smile. This was the reason she adored Candice so much. The blonde always knew the right things to say.

"Alright, you ready to do this?"

"You bet." The two put on the finishing pieces of their gear before diving into the beautiful waters of Bora Bora and seeing the one of the most amazing sights to behold.

* * *

Jade and Paige found themselves later in the evening chilling out by the pool near the villa in one of the cabanas. Everyone else was kind of doing their own thing so the two decided to hang out by the pool. Jade was clad in a spaghetti strap criss-cross yellow bikini top and floral print bikini bottoms while Paige was clad in a plain black bandeau bikini top and red plaid bikini bottoms.

"We really need to find someone for you," Paige inquired. "I mean how long has it been since you've been with someone, J?"

"I guess the right person hasn't come along yet."

Paige scoffed. "Seriously, babygirl? You and Rollins have been getting mighty close."

"He's just a friend, P. He's been helping me get in tip top shape and introducing me to the world of Crossfit." Jade felt herself cringe at the mention of Crossfit. It wasn't exactly her favorite thing to do, but she wasn't going to lie, it had been fun hanging out with Universal Champion lately.

"Oh, yeah, he's been helping you out. I'm sure he has." Jade rolled her eyes as Paige was wiggling her eyebrows.

"If I'm being honest with you, I'm just scared to move on."

"But, why? You and Seth would be totally cute together. I ship you two."

Jade sighed. It was now confession time. She knew she could trust Paige. Paige was known for a lot of things; a bad friend was not one of them. "It was three years ago. I was seriously involved with this guy back home; we'd been dating since I was in high school. He was two grades higher than me, but that didn't stop us from becoming as serious as we were. This guy was my first kiss, first serious relationship, even the guy I lost my virginity to. So, bascially, he was my first everything. Well, it turned out that he'd been screwing around with my best friend back home for over a year. Needless to to say, said best friend is not my best friend anymore."

Paige couldn't believe what she'd heard. Jade provided a perfectly good explanation on why she's afraid to move on. "J, I am so sorry." The British woman put her hand over the Irishwoman's hand. "So, it basically started after you came to the states then. God, what a bastard."

"Tell me about it," Jade laughed dryly. "It was so hard to talk about at first. But now, I realize that it's his loss. He can have that two faced backstabbing bitch."

"Exactly. You're so much better than that, J."

"And you want to know what he did?"

Paige's eyebrows furrowed. "What?"

"He tried getting with back with me after I started making a name for myself in NXT." She scoffed at the thought. Her ex could take the thought of them two getting back together and shove it where the sun don't shine.

"What a dick!" Paige exclaimed.

The younger Balor sibling laughed. "I know, right?"

"I can understand why now you have a hard time moving on. I really am sorry, babygirl." The Smackdown general manager rubbed her hand along Jade's arm soothingly. "The right guy will come around and sweep you off your feet. I promise that there are good guys out there."

"I know there are. It's just the one guy I am seemingly attracted to has a history of bad relationships and I just don't want to be another part of his history."

Paige's eyes lit up behind her sunglasses. "You like Rollins, don't you? Oh my god, I knew it!"

"I'm glad to know that you're so excited about me liking someone."

"Of course I am, J. This is a good sign. That means you are open to liking someone and are willing to give love a second chance."

"Too bad it's with the wrong guy," Jade sighed.

"Are you kidding me?" Paige questioned. "You and Seth would be so good together. I think you two are what each other needs. I think you need someone who understands you and Seth is perfect for that. I know his history isn't the best, but he also needs someone who understands him and willing to work around his busy work schedule and that's where you come in. C'mon, J, you two would be perfect for each other."

"I don't know..." Jade was hesitant.

"You have to admit that Seth has grown up. And I honestly think that you're the object of his affection; he's just too scared to do anything about it."

"What makes you think that?" The Green Goddess wondered.

"You come off as reserved and with good reason. Maybe he's just scared to approach you," The British woman explained. "Not only that, you are his good friend's little sister."

"Finn and I have a pact where we try not to pry in each other's love lives. Trust me, if it was up to me, he would not be dating his current girlfriend." Jade cringed at the mention of her brother's girlfriend. She still couldn't get over what Cathy said to Carson. "He would be dating someone else."

"Like Carson?"

Jade smirked and shrugged her shoulders.

Paige chuckled at her friend's expressions. "Anyways, you should keep hanging out with Seth and maybe things will slowly start to evolve."

"I guess I could do that. But, I will still be keeping my guard up." Yes, she found herself attracted to the Universal Champion; however, she wanted things to be smooth sailing if she was to pursue another relationship.

* * *

While Jade and Paige were at the poolside and all the other ladies were doing their own thing, Carson and Avery decided to hit up the Matira Beach Restaurant. The two had a love for sushi and the reviews stated that this particular restaurant's sushi was tasty. They'd just gotten their food and so far, the reviews weren't wrong. Carson and Avery agreed that the sushi was some of the best they had. Maybe it was the foreign experience; either way, they were pleased with the taste.

"Candice said that snorkeling this morning was fun," Avery said, taking a bite of her sushi. "I feel like I should've gone with you all instead. Even though taking a tour of the island was fun, seeing underwater creatures probably would've been a more memorable experience."

Carson pushed her glasses up then took a sip of her water. "It was so mesmerizing. I think you would've had a good time."

"Too bad Candice didn't tag along, I think she would've had a good time." Candice stayed behind to facetime her husband, Johnny Gargano and gush to him about all the fun she'd been having, even though it was the first day of their vacation.

"You know how she is though. She likes to tell him everything. I think they're so adorable."

"Me too," Carson agreed. She took another bite of her sushi. "I hope one day I can find something like they have."

"Don't worry it'll happen. Just give it time. The right person will come around."

The dark haired woman sighed. "I guess so. I'm just always the 'girl-friend' and never the 'girlfriend.'"

Avery grasped onto what Carson was saying. "I think Finn is an idiot anyways. He's with someone who doesn't respect his friends and is trying to dictate whom he can and can't see. Plus, I think you two would be so cute together. He just needs to get his head out of his ass."

Carson laughed at Avery's bluntness. It felt good knowing that other people felt the same way she did as it pertained to Finn and Cathy's relationship. "Did Candice tell you what I told her this morning about what happened at the Royal Rumble?"

"No." Avery's eyebrows furrowed. "What happened?"

"Cathy came up to me and trashed my wardrobe and basically told me that I should stay away from Finn or else. She also implied that I would never be good enough for him."

"Are you serious?" Avery's mouth came slightly agape. "What a bitch! Don't believe any of that garbage coming out of her mouth."

"I'm not. She just embarrassed me."

Avery nodded. "I can imagine so. I'm so sorry, Carson. I bet she feels threatened by you."

"Yeah, right," Carson scoffed. "She's not exactly lacking in confidence."

"Let's put this into perspective though: before we left for Phoenix for Takeover and the Royal Rumble, Finn came down to Orlando. Sure he was staying with Jade, but he made a point of hanging out with you." Avery had seen the picture that Finn put on his instagram of him and Carson at the bar down the road from Carson's condo. Carson had reposted it to her instagram. "She was probably jealous that he hung out with you in his spare time instead of her."

Carson shrugged her shoulders. "Who knows? I just know that while they are still together, I am going to keep my distance from him."

"Can't say I blame you." Avery took a sip of her water then took another bite of her sushi.

"I bet Adam is lonely without his companion around." Carson changed the subject; she was getting tired of talking about Finn and Cathy. "I wonder how he's functioning without you around."

"You make it sound like were a couple." Avery rolled her eyes. "He's actually back home visiting his family, so I'm sure he's doing just fine." The NXT North American Champion snapchatted her earlier with a video of him being greeted by his family in the airport and calling him a stranger.

Carson took the last bite of her sushi. "You two have been inseparable." She heard her phone chime and saw she had a text message from The Demon King and the Royal Rumble winner for 2019. She pushed up her glasses before picking her phone up to read the text.

 _Finn: I heard what Cathy said to you at the Rumble and I know it's probably not a good time considering you're on vacation, but if you could call me later that would be great._

Carson gave her phone to Avery so Avery could read the text. A shocked look came upon the face of the NXT women's champion. "You should call him."

"Are you sure that's a good idea?"

Avery shrugged her shoulders. "You never know. It could be important."

"I guess you're right."

"Whenever we get back to our villa, I can sit with you while you call him."

"I think I'll be fine. Thanks though. Besides, I'll just call him in the morning."

Carson and Avery got up from their seats and went to the counter to pay for their food. Both of them left a tip on the credit card slip and walked out of the restaurant. The two stopped in front of the restaurant entrance so they could take a picture for the memory. Carson took a picture on her phone and then Avery proceeded to do the same thing. They looked at each other's phones and were satisfied with the pictures took. Carson was dressed in a black crop top with black denim shorts and her black birkenstock sandals on her feet and her hair in a fishtail side braid. Avery was dressed in a silver sequined tanktop with white denim shorts with tears in them and silver sandals on her feet and her short hair(she took her extensions out) was down and straight framing around her face.

* * *

Jade woke up the next morning to the sound of her facetime ringer going off. She looked over to the bed of her roommate, Alexa Bliss, and thankfully the Goddess was still knocked out. The Irishwoman saw that it was the Architect and honestly she was surprised. She quietly closed the door and walked outside to sit on the swing outside of their Villa looking into the beautiful, clear waters of Bora Bora. She hit the green answer button and his handsome face came into view.

"Glad to see you're actually in a good mood considering it's your morning time." Jade noticed it was 9AM. Iowa was five hours ahead of Bora Bora which meant that it was 2pm in Seth's state. He was almost halfway through with his day.

Jade smirked. "It's always a good morning when you find out you don't have to do Crossfit."

The Universal champion chuckled. "Is Crossfit that bad?"

"It's not that I loathe Crossfit, it's just that you wake me up too damn early to do it."

"Fair enough. Don't you feel better after you get it over with though?"

"Not really," Jade scoffed. "Sleep is life. Hasn't anyone ever told you that?"

"Oh, c'mon Jade, who needs sleep?"

"Uh, I do!" She stated like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"Touche," Seth laughed. "Anyways, how's your vacation going with the ladies?"

"Dude, the view here is amazing!" She moved her phone around so she could show him the view of the beautiful island. "My phone doesn't do it justice though. It's much more lovely in person."

"I can only imagine what it looks like in person because the view on your phone is pretty damn mesmerizing."

"So, what have you been up to since you haven't been able to drag me to Crossfit at the crack of dawn?"

"I only drug you to Crossfit twice!" Seth exclaimed. "But, I went to check out Black and Brave and the students we have seem to be alright. I did a Crossfit session with them this morning. Now, I'm just sitting here talking to you, which honestly has been the highlight of my day thus far."

Jade felt her cheeks go hot. "Well, my day just got started so I'm not sure what the highlight of my day is going to be."

The Universal champion laughed. "Do you have any exciting plans for the day?"

"I'm supposed to go shopping with all the ladies and then Carson wanted to to try out this place called Bloody Mary's, so we'll go all go there this evening and hang out."

"That sounds like fun. Have you had fun so far?"

"Yeah," Jade's face lit up. "Yesterday I went snorkeling with some of the ladies and it was an incredible experience."

"I saw the picture on instagram. Glad to hear you're having a good time. Sorry to cut this short, but I am meeting my family for a late lunch and I need to head out."

"Alright. Well, thanks for facetiming me, even though you woke me up."

Seth winked. "Anytime. It was a pleasure seeing your face grace my phone screen."

"You're flattering me," Jade blushed.

"That was my point. Anyways, I need to go. Text me if you want."

Jade grinned. "Sounds like a plan. Talk to you later."

Seth waved at her before ending the facetime call. Jade held her hand in her hands and groaned. Seth made it so easy for her to like him. Maybe Paige was right, she should let things run it's course and see if anything happens with him.

* * *

Avery woke up the next morning and saw she had no text messages back from the NXT North American champion. She decided to call him and make sure everything is alright with him. His end rang four times and a frown came upon her face. After the fifth ring, she heard a groggy, "Hello?"

"Adam? It's Avery, are you okay?"

She heard him groan. "I'm feeling like shit. I woke during the middle of night and started vomiting profusely and then I woke up this morning with a fever."

"I'm sorry," the NXT women's champion apologized. "That would explain why you haven't had the chance to message me back. I was worried."

"Sorry, Av. I've been sleeping most of the day. What a way to welcome me back home."

Avery sighed. "Do you want me to fly out to where you're at?"

"No!" Adam exclaimed. "It is not necessary for you to fly out from your vacation to come to Pittsburgh. I'm staying with my parents and they've made sure that I'm taken care of."

"Are you sure?" She hated that her best friend was sick. He sounded so childlike and innocent. "I don't mind."

"I know you don't mind, Av. That's what makes you so awesome." She heard another groan from him and she frowned. "You just enjoy your vacation. I just have a little virus. I'll be good as new whenever you see me again."

"Alright. Whenever I get home, be ready for Netflix and chillin' baby."

Adam managed to let out a little chuckle. "You got it. Sorry that I worried you. Just enjoy the rest of your vacation; you deserve it."

"That's okay," Avery stated. "I hope you feel better."

"Thanks, I will. I'll talk to you later."

"Later." She ended the call and sighed. It sucked that on their days off, Adam to had get sick instead of enjoying time with his family. She knew that he would feel better. She went to her suitcase and got out a crystal rose sequined backless romper and headed to the bathroom that her and Candice shared and proceeded to get ready for the day.

* * *

Carson was already dressed for the day in a black tanktop that was tucked into light blue denim shorts. Her hair was down and straight with half of it up in a bun. She was sporting her trademark black raybans as usual. She told Avery that she would call Finn this morning; so while all the other women were getting ready for the day, she would be making her phone call. She put the phone up to her ear, her fingers tapping against her thigh as she waited for him to answer the phone.

"Carson?"

"Umm, yeah, it's me. You told me to call you so that's what I'm doing." She wasn't sure why she was so apprehensive for.

Finn took notice of how nervous Carson sounded on the phone and frowned. "Why are you nervous for? It's only me. You know you can talk to me."

"Not exactly."

Finn sighed. "We're friends Carson, of course you can talk to me."

"You wanted to me to call you, so I called you. What do you want?" She had a bit of agitation in her tone and she was shocked about it.

"I heard about what Cathy said to you at the Rumble," The Royal Rumble winner stated. "And I just wanted to apologize for it. Nobody should get spoken to that way, especially you."

Especially her? Carson was confused. "That's okay, no big deal."

Finn scoffed. "It's not okay, Carson."

"Sure it is," Carson insisted. "Now I'm out of your circle, you and your girlfriend can live a happy life together."

Finn wasn't sure why, but hearing Carson say 'you and your girlfriend' left a bitter feeling in his stomach. "Carson, it's not okay. I want you to be apart of my life. Cathy doesn't get to dictate whom I can and can't hang out with."

Carson felt her heart palpitate knowing that Finn still wanted her to be apart of his life. "I don't think that's a good idea." She didn't want to be the cause of a couple having relationship trouble even if said couple were in a tumultuous relationship from the start.

"Carson, why are you being like this? Why can't you just let us move past this and continue being friends?"

"I'm not trying to be hard to get along with. I just don't understand how you can be with someone who dictates your life!"

Finn was stunned silent. That was the first time he heard Carson's opinion about his relationship and he honestly had no idea how he could respond. "Cathy isn't that bad..." he knew he was lying.

"C'mon, Balor!" Carson yelled. "She fucking controls who you can hang out with and she alienates all your friends. I heard that she gave you a hard time for hanging out in Orlando before we went to Phoenix instead of going to Brooklyn to see her!"

"I wanted to see you and my sister."

"And that's sweet. But, if I'm being honest with you, I don't think that we should interact with each other while you're seeing her. I'm definitely not trying to control your life, but it's better for the both of us if we just keep our distance."

Finn sighed. "If that's what you want, Carson. I'll respect your wishes."

"Thanks. And, I'm sorry. But, I don't want to see someone I care about deeply continued being manipulated by some bitch who's honestly not even good for him."

"Sorry again. Hopefully we'll be able to hang out again sometime."

"Maybe. But, right now, it's not a good idea."

The Demon King sighed. "Bye, Carson."

"Bye, Finn." She ended the phone call and let the tears run down her face. Even though they weren't a couple; her heart felt as though she just went through a breakup with someone she loved.

 _What a way to ruin my vacation._

She walked back inside the villa and immediately went to Charly, Candice, and Avery who were all waiting for her with open arms. She went to them and cried as they all held her.

* * *

 **AN : Hope everyone enjoys this chapter.**


End file.
